August 2012

I've had this game for quite a while now and have been waiting until I complete it before writing about it. Man, I suck at Jamestown. I don't know if I will ever finish it, so I guess I will say a few things about it now. Despite my inability to finish the game, Jamestown is great. Read more about Jamestown...

Outside of Demons, I have not see many of Lamberto Bava's films. A Blade in the Dark has a few really effective and tense sequences. Counter to the title, these horrible killings mostly occur in bright, fluorescent light (not unlike Argento's Tenebre). Unfortunately, the story is terrible. The victims are just passersby who appear in the main character's house for no good reason. The hero's job is that of a horror movie composer. Read more about A Blade in the Dark...

Dear Esther is a noble little experiment that pushes the notion of video games as art. The problem is, it isn't much of a game. You walk around a beautifully rendered desolate island in first-person view. As you move along you are fed bits and pieces of a narrative involving a car accident and a woman named Esther. The story slowly comes together as you approach your goal but remains vague and feels unfinished even near at the very end. Read more about Dear Esther...

Another solid pulp novel from Prologue Books. This time the story follows a group of ex-soldiers out for revenge against their old captain. None of the five main characters is without their dark side so you aren't quite sure who to root for.

Okami follows much the same formula of a typical Zelda game. You proceed through the game by defeating the boss at the end of a dungeon only to gain a power that gives you access to the next dungeon. Between each dungeon there are overworld levels to explore, wandering enemies to battle, items to collect, fish to fish and characters to bore you with endless unskippable dialogue.

It all sounds very mediocre, right? But where Okami sets itself apart is in its Japanese woodblock inspired rendering and art design. It's not quite as sharp as the cover art would suggest, but it remains a colorful and playful world filled with tons of unique looking characters and enemies. Read more about Okami...